More than 200 Graduate from School of Business in December Commencement Ceremony

December 13, 2012

School of Business Dean Gene Anderson (left) joins Provost Thomas J. LeBlanc in hooding Arun Sarin, former CEO of Vodafone, who received an honorary degree.

Nearly 135 the School’s MBA and other master’s degree candidates joined nearly 75 BBA and BSBA candidates in commencement exercises Dec. 13. Degree candidates from all UM schools and colleges (except for Miller School of Medicine MD degrees) were recognized by name and walked across the stage to be congratulated by President Donna E. Shalala and their school’s dean.

Also during the ceremony, Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid, founder and chairman of Rashid Engineering in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and Arun Sarin, who served as chief executive officer of telecommunications giant Vodafone from 2003 to 2008, received honorary doctor of science degrees. Both are proud parents of Miami Hurricanes—Al-Rashid with three children including Ibrahim N. Al-Rashid (BBA ’06, Entrepreneurship). Gene Anderson, dean of the School of Business Administration, joined Provost Thomas J. LeBlanc in hooding Sarin, who also gave the commencement address.

“At a macro level, the world is very interconnected and will become more interconnected,” Sarin told graduates, noting that events in other countries such as Brazil and China impact the United States.

While people thought that the financial crisis would be localized, “as we know, it spread across the world,” Sarin said. “The main point is that we are interconnected.”

Technology, Sarin told graduates, is “changing before our eyes.” Broadband service will soon be available in every corner of the world, he noted. “We will have access, in real time, to money, credit, and our assets so that we feel more secure,” and in the health care industry, information will be sent remotely to doctors."

“Lead the change and help write the rules,” Sarin urged graduates.

Following the ceremony, the newly minted School of Business graduates celebrated their accomplishments with family, friends, faculty and staff at a reception outside the School. Earlier in the week, the best among the School’s MBA classes of 2012 along with their favorite professors were honored as part of an annual MBA awards program.